Benchwork

After several months of tackling other household projects and some basement finishing, I’ve finally been able to start construction of the layout!

One of the first things I did was to start preliminary design of a suspended loop for the upper level to ascend into staging. Why a loop vs a helix? The upper benchwork height will be 61” at the “northern” end and I cannot place overhead staging higher than 72”due to ductwork. If I partially hide a track on the upper level I can build staging in a separate room without overhead obstacles and the upper level drops to 57”, maximizing scenic space. This may potentially add extra run to the layout and potentially be able to model a little bit more of the KY&N north of Grantsville. I started by establishing the center point and then protracting the circle so the loop would provide a track radius of 36”. Later, I used a plumb bob to mark reference points on the floor joints above.

Drawing outer limits of the lower level helix and upper level loop.

I reused old sections of 3/4” plywood cut into curved panels and fastened them to the floor joists so that the all thread suspending the upper level loop has a firm structure to be bolted to.

Plywood support for suspending the upper benchwork and loop.

Finally, I started building the first level benchwork as well as lower staging access and staging yard.

Lower level benchwork in progress.

Access to staging narrow shelf construction.

Entrance to lower level staging.

Lower level staging benchwork progress.